More than 500 protesters gathered outside the Central Kalimantan Governor's Office in Palangkaraya, Indonesia, on Friday, October 23, demanding stronger action against forest and peatland fires that have spread thick smoke across Southeast Asia. Their demonstration followed days of student-led protests in more than half a dozen Indonesian cities, as public frustration grows over a prolonged environmental and health crisis.
The demonstrations come as Indonesia reports progress in reducing detected fire hotspots but struggles to extinguish persistent blazes. Meanwhile, air pollution in neighboring Singapore worsened overnight, reaching unhealthy levels across all five regions early Saturday, October 24.
The latest developments highlight a central problem: fewer satellite-detected fires do not necessarily mean cleaner air, an end to dangerous ground-level burning, or relief for communities already exposed to weeks of smoke.
Why Indonesians Are Protesting the Haze Response
The October 23 demonstration in Palangkaraya, the capital of Central Kalimantan on Borneo, brought renewed attention to demands for a national disaster emergency declaration and more effective measures to prevent recurring forest and land fires.
According to Associated Press reporting, thousands of Indonesian students have participated in demonstrations across the country. Some protests have overlapped with wider public dissatisfaction over economic conditions.
Student and civil society groups argue that the scale of the haze requires a stronger response from President Prabowo Subianto's administration. Protesters want greater accountability, more aggressive prevention of agricultural burning, and national recognition of the emergency.
The demand for an emergency declaration is important, but it must be distinguished from an official government decision. The demonstrations themselves do not establish that Indonesia has enacted the nationwide disaster designation protesters are requesting.
The protests also reflect concerns extending beyond environmental damage. Many demonstrators have worn protective masks, while smoke has affected everyday activities in communities near the fires.
Are Indonesia's Wildfires Finally Easing?
Some indicators suggest that firefighting operations and changing weather conditions have reduced fire activity in parts of Indonesia. However, authorities continue to warn that uneven rainfall and persistent burning could undermine those improvements.
Indonesia's SiPongi forest-monitoring system recorded 565 high-confidence hotspots on October 22, compared with more than 1,200 on October 14, according to Reuters.
High-confidence hotspots are satellite detections of potential fire activity, not a direct count of separate fires or a complete measurement of burned land. Cloud cover, observation conditions and fires burning beneath the surface can complicate monitoring.
Indonesia has deployed more than 69,000 firefighting personnel and approximately 50 aircraft for operations that include water bombing and weather modification efforts. Authorities have also been testing additional suppression techniques.
Separate estimates from the European Union's Copernicus monitoring service indicate that carbon dioxide emissions from Indonesian fires declined from 22.22 million metric tons during the seven days preceding October 15 to 14.44 million metric tons during October 15–21.
Those figures indicate lower estimated emissions between the two periods. They do not establish that the fires have been extinguished or that air quality has recovered throughout the region.
Peatland fires are particularly difficult to control because organic material can continue smoldering below the surface after visible flames disappear. Dry vegetation, persistent heat and insufficient rainfall can create conditions for renewed burning.
Indonesia's disaster-management authorities warned on October 22 that hotspot trends remained volatile and that new fires could emerge where rainfall was uneven. The country's weather agency also expected the rainy season to arrive later than usual, potentially prolonging the emergency.
How the Haze Is Affecting Singapore and Neighboring Countries
The environmental consequences extend beyond Indonesia because prevailing winds can transport smoke across national borders. Singapore and Malaysia have experienced serious haze episodes, while smoke-related disruptions have also been reported elsewhere in Southeast Asia.
Singapore's National Environment Agency reported that, at 6 p.m. on October 23, its 24-hour Pollutant Standards Index ranged from 85 to 108, spanning the Moderate and Unhealthy categories. One-hour PM2.5 concentrations ranged from 70 to 98 micrograms per cubic meter.
Conditions deteriorated overnight. According to Channel NewsAsia's October 24 report, the 24-hour PSI reached 112–139 across Singapore's five regions at 6 a.m. Saturday, placing every region in the Unhealthy category. One-hour PM2.5 concentrations ranged from 72 to 115 micrograms per cubic meter.
These measurements represent different indicators. The 24-hour PSI describes overall pollution conditions using a longer measurement period, while one-hour PM2.5 readings provide more immediate information about concentrations of fine airborne particles.
In its October 23 haze advisory, Singapore's environmental authority forecast a PSI range of 90–140 for October 24. That forecast should not be confused with subsequently observed measurements.
The agency advised healthy people to reduce prolonged or strenuous outdoor physical exertion under the forecast conditions. It recommended additional precautions for children, older adults, pregnant women and people with chronic heart or lung conditions. Residents were also encouraged to check the latest one-hour PM2.5 readings before immediate outdoor activities.
The human impact has been substantial in Indonesia. The country's Health Ministry reported more than 333,470 cases of acute respiratory illness across seven haze-affected provinces since mid-August, according to AP.
That figure represents reported illnesses across the affected provinces during the specified period. It should not be interpreted as proof that every individual case was caused exclusively by wildfire smoke.
AP has also reported school closures in Timor-Leste, commonly known as East Timor, and haze reaching the Philippines. The severity, duration and health implications of exposure differ between locations.
Who Is Responsible for the Fires?
Indonesia's recurring haze problem is closely associated with forest and peatland fires, including burning linked to agricultural land preparation. Dry conditions can allow fires to spread beyond their original locations, particularly where peat ecosystems have been drained or degraded.
However, identifying the general causes of regional fires is different from establishing responsibility for a particular blaze. Determining whether a landowner, plantation operator or other party violated applicable requirements depends on evidence connecting specific activities and land areas to the fires.
Singapore has expanded its response through its Transboundary Haze Pollution Act, which provides mechanisms for addressing certain activities outside Singapore that contribute to haze pollution within the country.
In an official announcement dated October 23, Singapore's National Environment Agency confirmed that it had issued preventive measures notices to seven companies in Indonesia on October 16 concerning fires in Sumatra, followed by three additional companies on October 19 concerning fires in Kalimantan.
The notices require the ten Indonesian companies to undertake specified fire-prevention or suppression measures and submit relevant action plans. The agency also requested documents and information from ten Singapore-registered companies regarding their business relationships, land concessions and fire-management arrangements.
These are distinct groups of companies subject to different types of notices. The measures represent regulatory action and information gathering; they should not be described as criminal convictions or final determinations that every named company caused the haze.
The regional dimension complicates accountability. Smoke can cross borders even when the underlying fires, land-use decisions and regulatory responsibilities fall within another country's jurisdiction.
Effective cooperation therefore requires more than identifying where smoke originated. Authorities must share relevant information, investigate specific fire sources, enforce applicable rules and coordinate practical measures to reduce further burning.
What Happens Next in the Southeast Asia Haze Crisis?
Several developments will determine whether the crisis begins to ease or continues affecting communities across the region.
Rainfall and fire suppression: Sustained rainfall could help reduce active burning, but Indonesia's authorities have warned that intermittent showers may not extinguish persistent peatland fires. Monitoring will need to distinguish temporary improvements from durable containment.
Air-quality conditions: Singapore's environmental agency indicated that shifting winds and showers from October 25 could reduce smoke transport toward the city-state. This remains a weather-dependent possibility rather than a confirmed end to the haze.
Government decisions: Indonesian authorities face continuing pressure to demonstrate effective fire prevention, maintain suppression operations and respond to demands for a national disaster declaration. Any change in emergency status must be confirmed through an official announcement.
Corporate accountability: Singapore's notices create further obligations for the companies concerned, while requests for documents may contribute to additional scrutiny. Whether investigations lead to further enforcement findings remains unresolved.
Public health: Updated respiratory illness figures and official pollution monitoring will be important for assessing the continuing burden on affected communities. Changes in reported case counts must be interpreted alongside reporting periods and the scope of health surveillance.
The central uncertainty is not whether Indonesia has made any progress against the fires. Available hotspot and emissions data indicate some improvement. The larger question is whether those gains can be sustained long enough to reduce smoke exposure across Southeast Asia—and whether authorities can address the practices and conditions that allow such crises to recur.
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